Table 6 summarises the major soil-landscape systems that occur in the region which are illustrated in Figures 2a and 2b.
These broad soil-landscape systems have been correlated to stocking rate units, which are a specific type of land unit which combines general knowledge of the landforms that occur within the systems and the main Western Australian Soil Groups (Schoknecht 1999).
Western Australian soil groups provide a simple, non-technical guide to similar groups of soils.
More detailed stocking rates have been applied to all available land resource surveys
described in Section 6. Their current availability, their main limiting constraints and a brief
introduction to land capability are also described.
General description Soil-landscape systems
Description Stocking rate units
(dominant units in bold, minor units omitted)
Infor- mation
sheet number
Base stocking
rate (DSE/ha)
Irrigated stocking
rate (DSE/ha) Calcareous coastal dunes:
Quindalup, Kilcarnup, part of D’Entrecasteaux
Coastal dunes, with dominant calcareous deep sand, with shallow calcareous sand and yellow or brown sand. Coastal scrub.
Rapidly drained calcareous sands Well drained yellow to brown sands
SR2 SR1
2 6
Nil 20
Yellow dunes and flats over limestone:
Spearwood, Gracetown
Dunes and flats overlying limestone, with yellow deep sand, pale deep sand and yellow/brown shallow sand. Tuart forest and woodland on the Swan Coastal Plain, marri-jarrah-karri forest, woodland and coastal heath south of Cape Naturaliste.
Well drained yellow to brown sands Rapidly drained pale sands
Pale sand flats
SR1 SR3 SR4
6 2 6
20 10 20
Estuarine flats:
Vasse
Poorly drained estuarine flats of the Swan Coastal Plain. Tidal flat soil, saline wet soil and pale deep sand. Includes some moderately drained fertile clays and loams. Samphire, sedges and paperbark woodland.
Semi-wet soils
Rapidly drained pale sands Rapidly drained calcareous sands Loamy flats and terraces
Clay flats Wet soils
SR5 SR3 SR2 SR7 SR6 SR5.1
6 2 2 10 6 2
20 10 Nil 25 20 Nil Siliceous dunes:
Bassendean, part of D’Entrecasteaux
Dunes, flats and swampy depression, of the Swan Coastal Plain, with pale deep sands and semi-wet soils dominant. Banksia woodland and heaths on dunes and flats and paperbark woodlands on wetter flats and depressions.
Rapidly drained pale sands Pale sand flats
Semi-wet soils
SR3 SR4 SR5
2 6 6
10 20 20
Alluvial sandy plain:
Moore River
Level to gently undulating plain being a relict flood plain, partially rejuvenated; sandy duplex, sandy earth, some sandy gravel; alluvium and weathered sandstone.
Semi-wet soils Pale sand flats
Well drained yellow to brown sands Wet soils
SR5 SR4 SR1 SR5.1
6 6 6 2
20 20 20 Nil
Soil-landscape systems Description Stocking rate units
(dominant units in bold, minor units omitted)
Infor- mation
sheet number
Base stocking
rate (DSE/ha)
Irrigated stocking
rate (DSE/ha) Sandy alluvial plains:
Abba Scott River
Poorly drained sandy flats. Wet soils, Semi-wet soils, Grey deep sandy duplex and pale deep sands. Jarrah-marri-paperbark woodland.
Pale sand flats Semi-wet soils wet soils
Rapidly drained pale sands
SR4 SR5 SR5.1
SR3
6 6 2 2
20 20 Nil 10 Foothills:
Forrestfield Coombidgee Whicher Scarp
Foothills and rises. Sandy and loamy gravels, deep sands and sandy duplexes. Jarrah-marri forest and woodland.
Gravel slopes
Well drained yellow to brown sands Rapidly drained pale sands
Pale sand flats Semi-wet soils
SR8 SR1 SR3 SR4 SR5
10 6 2 6 6
25 20 10 20 20 Alluvial plain with sands,
loams and clays:
Guildford Jindong Pinjarra Yanga
Poorly drained flats. Grey deep sandy duplex soils, loamy earths, cracking clays, often with a self-mulching surface, extensive areas of saline and non-saline wet soils. Jarrah-marri-rudis, sheoak and paperbark woodland.
Semi-wet soils Pale sand flats
Loamy flats and terraces Clay flats
Wet soils
SR5 SR4 SR7 SR6 SR5.1
6 6 10 6 2
20 20 25 20 Nil
Plateau with laterite and sandplain:
Dandaragan Mogumber Regan
Gently undulating plateau with areas of sandplain and some laterite. On Cretaceous sediments.
Broad U-shaped valleys 80-150 m deep, smaller V-shaped valleys east of the Gingin Scarp in the south. Soils are formed in colluvium and weathered rock.
Rapidly drained pale sands
Well drained yellow to brown sands Gravel slopes
Loamy slopes Steep slopes
SR3 SR1 SR8 SR10
SR9
2 6 10 10 6
10 20 25 25 10
Lateritic plateaux on granitic rocks:
Darling Plateau Wundowie
Moderately to strongly dissected lateritic plateau on granite with eastward-flowing streams in broad shallow valleys, some surfical Eocene sediments.
Soils are formed in laterite colluvium or
Well drained yellow to brown sands Gravel slopes
Pale sand flats Semi-wet soils
SR1 SR8 SR4 SR5
6 10 6 6
20 25 20 20
Soil-landscape systems
Description Stocking rate units
(dominant units in bold, minor units omitted)
Infor- mation
sheet number
Base stocking
rate (DSE/ha)
Irrigated stocking
rate (DSE/ha) Dissected lateritic plateaux on
sedimentary rocks:
Treeton Hills Yelverton Shelf McLeod
Undulating terrain with remnants of lateritic plateau, with sandy gravels, deep sands, semi-wet soils. Jarrah-marri-wandoo forest and woodland.
Well drained yellow to brown sands Gravel slopes
Semi-wet soils Pale sand flats
SR1 SR8 SR5 SR4
6 10 6 6
20 25 20 20
Granitic valleys:
Lowden Murray Bindoon
Wilyabrup Valleys Glenarty Valleys
Deep valleys, in the plateau areas, with loamy earths, loamy duplexes, loamy and sandy gravels, stony soils and sandy duplexes. Jarrah-marri forest.
Loamy slopes Gravel slopes Steep slopes
Well drained yellow to brown sands Loamy flats and terraces
SR10 SR8 SR9 SR1 SR7
10 10 6 6 10
25 25 10 20 25